


Suspended Belief

by wellwritten



Category: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
Genre: F/M, Light-Hearted, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:27:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25220884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wellwritten/pseuds/wellwritten
Summary: What could Jack Robinson possibly have done to warrant being suspended?
Relationships: Phryne Fisher/Jack Robinson
Comments: 11
Kudos: 122





	Suspended Belief

Suspended Belief

Author’s Note: This takes place sometime after Unnatural Habits. I own nothing, just like to take them out and play. 

“Hello, Hugh, how are you today? Is the Inspector in?” Miss Phryne Fisher waltzed into City South station with her normal confidence and dressed to impress. 

“Umm, no, he’s not, Miss Fisher, but I’ll leave him a message that you stopped by.”

“Well that’s hardly necessary, where did he go? Was there a new case, perhaps?”

Hugh looked around, as if to make sure no one was eavesdropping, “No Miss, he umm, has been temporarily suspended, pending an investigation.”

“An investigation into what?” she exclaimed.

“Indecency,” Hugh whispered across the desk.

“What rot! Jack is the most decent man in Melbourne!”

“I don’t know the whole story, Miss, except that it sounded like whatever happened had something to do with….well, with a “fancy toff who thinks she’s a detective.”

Phryne’s eyes went wide and she stepped back, “Did Jack say that?”

“No! No, of course not! The new commissioner did. But he doesn’t know you Miss, so…”

“It’s fine, Hugh, don’t worry about it, I’ve been called worse. I’m much more concerned about the Inspector.”

“I’m sure it will blow over.”

Her next response was forced, as was her smile. “I’m sure it will, Hugh. Just a misunderstanding, right? Nothing to worry about.” 

“Right, Miss, nothing to worry about. I’m sure the Inspector will be back soon.”

“When did he leave?”

“He stormed out after he had words with the Commissioner.”

“Where do you think he would he have gone?”

“I really can’t say. Home, maybe?”

“Right, I’m sure he’ll just take some time and clear his head and then straighten out whatever misunderstanding has occurred.”

Phryne headed back toward her car, deep in thought, hoping Hugh was right.

00000

After a few hours of searching his usual haunts, Phryne found Jack’s car not all that far from the station, at the Melbourne Boxing Club. She knew his preferred exercise was cycling, but she’d heard him mention that boxing was a good workout in cold or rainy weather. 

She pulled the large glass and wood door open and took in her surroundings. The room echoed with its tall ceilings and painted walls, the only light in the room coming from the long windows on either end of the room. At early afternoon, the gymnasium only had a few patrons about, each focused on their own workout. As Phryne moved toward the back of the room, the repetitive sound of leather hitting leather pulled her that direction.

“Jack?”

She called out but stopped as she came near, the sight of him punching the large leather bag catching her off guard. Dressed in singlet and trunks, both sweat drenched, he looked so dissimilar to the buttoned-up Detective Inspector that was her partner. Jack punched with intensity, each hit hard and unforgiving, indicating he hadn’t heard her approach.

“Jack?”

Jack turned in surprise and paused. He looked to where she was standing, prim and proper in an outfit he assumed was in the latest fashion. Out of habit, he started to put on his shirt, but changed his mind and gave a soft snort, then went back to his workout. 

“I heard you’ve been suspended.” Jack didn’t stop, but neither did Phryne. “Hugh said it had something to do with me.”

He looked up, mid-punch, “Leave it alone, Miss Fisher.”

“I will for now, but you can’t keep me in the dark. What has happened that someone is accusing you of public indecency?”

“Remember the Johnson robbery a few weeks ago?”

Phryne’s eyes went up in recall, and after a moment she nodded. “We were at the bank to question a suspect and the Johnson Brothers robbed the bank while we were there. The guard on duty drew his gun, but they were armed too, and shot him. I pulled my gun and kept it on them.”

“But I did not have my gun that day, it was turned in for repair, so I pulled the one weapon I could think of which was the blade in your garter.” 

“Oh.”

“Oh, indeed. Mrs. William Markingham contacted the Commissioner’s Office to complain that I accosted a woman in broad daylight and now charges have been filed.”

“You didn’t use the knife on me, what was she thinking? What did the Commissioner say?”

“That I should not have knowledge of a weapon on your person at such an inappropriate location.”

“It’s not like you saw it in my bedroom! You saw it on a case, where we needed that particular tool!”

Jack didn’t respond and went back to hitting the bag. The sound of leather striking leather created a quick rhythm.

“Why are you so angry?”

Jack’s jaw remained tight as he continued to punch.

“Jack?” Phryne pushed.

Abruptly he stopped. “Do you want to know why I’m angry? Because all I did was my job, to keep the public safe, including Mrs. Markingham. I used the resources available to me because at the end of the day, whether official or not, you are my partner and we know things about each other as partners would.”

“Did you tell the Commissioner that?”

“Of course I did, not that it did any good.” 

“What was said about me?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Dammit, Jack! Why won’t you tell me!?” 

“Because it’s not true so it doesn’t bear repeating.”

Phryne set her bag down on the ground and leaned against the wall near where Jack had resumed punching. “Then tell me why you’re really angry. You’ll sort out all the confusion, you did save the woman’s life after all, along with everyone else in the bank.” 

Jack grunted, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with what she’d said, and slowed his pace, finally holding both sides of the bag to still its swing.

“Jack?” she asked again.

“Are you sure you really want to know?” 

Phryne nodded.

Jack came closer, standing right in front of her, invading her space as she so often got in his. “The new Commissioner is just stretching the muscles of his new role. I get that, and I even understand it, to some degree. But to start over explaining the way we work to the higher ups is draining and I find I have little patience for it.”

Phryne raised her eyebrows, encouraging him to share the rest of the story. 

Jack maintained her gaze, but let it fall to her lips briefly, then quickly back to meet her eyes. He took a deep breath, then continued, “The indecency they’re charging me of is nothing compared to the fantasies I have about touching you. In my dreams, my hand glides to your blade and sets it to the side so my fingers can continue to drift higher to more rewarding locations. While all of Melbourne is concerned that I’ve seen the inside of your knee, I’m imagining sliding in and out of your warmest depths until you scream my name.” While he talked, he held her gaze. Then he pulled off his boxing gloves and unwrapped the protective tape on his hands.

Jack’s voice was low and quiet, “I have battled my own wants and desires for so long it has become second nature when all I really want to do is kiss you…everywhere. So, Miss Fisher, if you want to know why I’m upset, it’s because I’m tired of fighting the urges that I battle every. single. day.”

She’d always suspected Jack had a strong reserve of restraint, but to hear him express that want out loud, and that his restraint was near the breaking point, felt intoxicating. He watched her intently, she assumed for reaction, his eyes dark with desire.

Then he leaned toward her, letting his forearm rest on the wall above her head. He didn’t block her in but gave them privacy for a conversation that had become intimate.

“Maybe it’s time to stop fighting, Jack,” she whispered. 

He met her gaze and smiled softly, “Maybe it is.” Jack let his free hand drift down her side, the softness of her blouse a stark contrast to the coarseness of his skin.

Phryne watched his face soften as the smile reached his eyes. “You know Jack, you’re not alone. I think about you, like that, all the time. So much in fact, that sometimes when I’m getting dressed in the morning…well, let’s just say that your fantasies and mine are fairly similar. And if I’m feeling particularly hopeful, I sometimes leave off a garment or two on the off chance that circumstances might allow for more than flirting.”

“Phryne, are you saying--?”

“I’m not saying anything, but maybe instead of putting all your energy into that,” she nodded over to the leather bag, still rocking back and forth, “you could let yourself investigate other…outlets.”

Jack’s eyes widened and he swallowed, processing the words she’d just spoken. His hands wouldn’t wait for common sense to prevail and all he could do was watch his free hand gather up the loose fabric of her skirt. As the luxurious cloth bunched along his arm, his fingers started to explore. He felt the tautness of her thigh first and followed the ribbon of her garter higher. Though he could see nothing, he felt a growing warmth confirming the promising temptation. Jack looked around, and assured that his form blocked her smaller one, he pushed the back of his knuckle a bit higher and was rewarded by the feel of her soft curls, unprotected by satin or silk. His gasp and hers came in tandem.

“Jack!”

The plaintive tone encouraged him, and while his fingers continued to explore, he captured her lips in a soft kiss.

As her whimper changed to moans, he pulled back. “Shhh, you have to stay quiet or I’ll have to stop.”

“Don’t stop, please!”

“I don’t want to, you feel amazing. You’re so wet, throbbing around my finger,” he made an adjustment, “fingers. It makes it so easy to imagine if we were alone and I was filling you up in other ways. Would you like that, Miss Fisher?” He whispered against her lips. “Would you like me to touch you even more?”

Phryne could only nod, her lip tucked under her teeth in concentration, trying to stay quiet as Jack took liberties she’d only dreamed of. As she became lost to the sensations, she felt herself slide down against the wall, but Jack’s hand tucked under her hip to hold her in place.

“Shhh,” he reminded, but his soft kiss hushed her whispered moans. “Come for me, Phryne, right here.”

Jack’s voice resonated through her core, his deep voice sending shafts of desire which paired with his exploring fingers, sent her hard over the edge. 

He continued his kisses but let his hand fall away. His forehead met hers while they both caught their breath. “Are you okay?”

Phyrne let her head fall back to the wall and looked at him through listless lashes. “Very okay, Inspector.” She waved a hand down to smooth out her skirt and followed Jack’s gaze as he took a quick look around the room to make sure they’d continued unnoticed. Apparently, they had. “If society was mortified by you touching my leg, I can’t imagine what they would have said about this.”

00000

“She’s a simpleton of the highest caliber, my dear, surely you’ve met her?”

“I don’t believe I have, Prudence, but I have heard of her, of course.”

“Well trust me when I tell you that the rumors are all true. She’s hardly out of the nursery and already doing more harm than good. Did you know she’s put a bug in your husband’s ear and now one of our most estimable inspectors has been suspended!”

“Oh no! Not the one your niece assists, surely?”

“The very one! When I imagine Phryne out on the streets of Melbourne without the watchful eye of Inspector Jack Robinson, well I can’t tell you how much I worry. Perhaps you could put in a word? Inspector Robinson has been so helpful over the years, to our community of course, but to my family as well.”

“Well, of course, I’ll talk with Bertram about this, Prudence. Don’t spend one more minute worrying on it, I assure you it will be resolved!”

00000

With one eye opened, Jack Robinson knew he was not in his own bed. This bed was bigger and the sheets much finer than his basic version. He propped himself up on one elbow to take in his surroundings and was flooded with recall of the last 24 hours. To his side, Phryne was asleep, sprawled on her stomach, her lower half barely covered by a sheet, with her feet uncovered as if she’d become warm during the night. The tall windows in the luxurious hotel room they’d shared last night were open, their curtains pulled wide open and fluttering in the morning breeze.

“Phry-nee,” he whispered with a soft teasing cadence.

“Hmmm,” the lady in question responded.

“It’s time to get up.”

“I’m pretty certain that the hour is unreasonable, especially after such a busy evening,” she murmured, more to her pillow than to Jack.

In response, Jack moved so his body paralleled hers more closely and kissed down her exposed spine, causing her to shiver and then giggle. Phryne turned, and tucked into Jack’s front, but kept her eyes closed.

“I ordered breakfast for you this morning, it should be here by eight o’clock.”

“Mmm, I’ll just feast on you then, shall I, until then?”

Serving on the police force had always been an important part of Jack Robinson’s life. His and Phryne’s most recent case where the Commissioner was found to be part of a smuggling ring involving young girls, had thrown everyone for a loop. Yet as he had watched Phryne check in to the Windsor mid-afternoon, in broad daylight, then followed her toward the elevator seemed like the easiest choice he’d made in quite some time. As soon as they’d entered the suite, and he’d kicked the door closed behind them, Phryne had pushed him against the door and touched and tasted every inch of him, and he’d done the same to her. Could he balance his professional responsibilities with the joy that this woman brought him?

After hours of delicious discovery, finding peaks and valleys, new tastes and sounds, Jack wondered what would become of him now. Would he even still have a job after his suspension? Or was the bigger question, did he care?

The phone rang, interrupting Jack’s exploration of Phryne’s lower back. With a moan and then a flirtatious wink, Phryne stood to see what was so important to warrant the interruption. Jack stretched out on the large bed, his head propped up on his elbow, content to watch as she paraded down the hall toward the parlor and answered the call.

“Hello?”

“I see, well that’s a very interesting development!”

“And was a timeline mentioned?”

“Okay, thank you, Dot. I’ll deliver that message when I see the Inspector. Let Mr. Butler know we’ll have a celebration dinner this evening, would you? Very good, I’ll see you a little later this afternoon.”

Listening to the one-sided conversation was an exercise in creative guessing as to what was said on the other end of the line.

“Everything okay?” Jack asked as she rejoined him in the bedroom. 

“Very okay. In fact, Dot let me know that the station received a call today that your suspension was found to be completely unfounded and that you have and remain a model member of the Victoria Constabulary.”

“That is a bit of good news, continuing my employment will make eating and having a roof over my head a lot easier.”

“Apparently, the new Commissioner’s wife is a friend of Aunt Prudence’s and your service to the community was brought to light.”

“Are you telling me Prudence Stanley went to bat for me with the new Commissioner? I find that difficult to believe.”

“Well, I might have put a bug in her ear. You have been very valuable to our family, Jack, and in more recent developments, I find your services will be needed in possibly atypical hours and locations.”

“I do live to serve, Miss Fisher.” 

Jack had moved to sit on the side of the bed, and as Phryne talked, she let herself fall into his lap and wrap an arm around his neck. “Unfortunately, that means you need to report back to work tomorrow morning.”

“Hmm, I guess that means I better rest up.” Jack leaned back, and lifted Phryne to follow, the sound of her laughter filling the air.

The End

Reviews are greatly appreciated!


End file.
